Dirty Habits? Online Pornography Use, Personality, Obsessionality, and Compulsivity

Abstract

Internet pornography use can be compulsive, but evaluation of pathology underlying this is difficult to assess. The present study aimed to distinguish individual differences in personality and psychopathology that predict pornography consumption in an individual, and whether this reflected more general compulsive processes, assessing 226 male participants. Neuroticism, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and obsessional checking all significantly correlated with a latent measure of compulsive behavior upon which use of Internet pornography use also loaded. The authors suggest the greater use of pornography on the Internet may reflect a general vulnerability to compulsive problems related to basic disposition, and that problems associated with this behavior can be managed with generic clinical approaches to obsessional and compulsive disorders.

Full text

Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 00:1–16, 2013
Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
ISSN: 0092-623X print / 1521-0715 online
DOI: 10.1080/0092623X.2012.710182
Dirty Habits? Online Pornography Use,
Personality, Obsessionality, and Compulsivity
VINCENT EGAN and REENA PARMAR
Department of Psychology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
Internet pornography use can be compulsive, but evaluation of
pathology underlying this is difficult to assess. The present study
aimed to distinguish individual differences in personality and psy-
chopathology that predict pornography consumption in an individ-
ual, and whether this reflected more general compulsive processes,
assessing 226 male participants. Neuroticism, agreeableness, con-
scientiousness, and obsessional checking all significantly correlated
with a latent measure of compulsive behavior upon which use of In-
ternet pornography use also loaded. The authors suggest the greater
use of pornography on the Internet may reflect a general vulner-
ability to compulsive problems related to basic disposition, and
that problems associated with this behavior can be managed with
generic clinical approaches to obsessional and compulsive disor-
ders.
Pornography is cheaper, more easily accessible, diverse, and popular than
ever before (Ogas & Gaddam, 2011). Despite feminist and socially conser-
vative concerns regarding the malign effects of pornography, the association
between pornography consumption and holding abusive attitudes toward
women is primarily seen in persons with more antisocial personalities
(Ferguson & Hartley, 2009; McKee, 2007). Nevertheless, pornography can
be problematic at a personal level, particularly for relationships (Manning,
2006). Bridges, Bergner, and Hesson-McInnis (2003) found some women
were distressed by male partners who used pornography, perceiving this as
a breach of intimacy, and facilitating estrangement (Zitzman & Butler, 2009),
perhaps because men use pornography as an outlet when otherwise sexually
unsatisfied; when women use pornography, it is seen as an adjunct to
lovemaking, raising the quality of sex for both persons (Bridges & Morokoff,
Address correspondence to Vincent Egan, Department of Psychology, University of Le-
icester, 106 New Walk, Leicester, LE1 7EA, United Kingdom. E-mail: ve2@le.ac.uk
1

2 V. Egan and R. Parmar
2011). Some men are more likely than others are to develop problems
associated with pornography use (Twohig, Crosby, & Cox, 2009). Men
who are more preoccupied by pornography have unrealistic expectations
of sex and sexual intercourse, and false comparison may contribute to
female negative self-image, disrupting relationships (Daneback, Træen, &
M
˚
ansson, 2009; Yucel & Gassanov, 2009). Overall, pornography use can
lead to relationship or family problems, arrest for sexual offences, difficulties
at work, financial problems, an overpreoccupation with sexuality, and a
pressing need for the individual to better regulate their own behavior.
Pornographic material is now predominantly distributed using Internet-
based technology. The Internet is characterized by a “Triple-A- Engine” (Ac-
cessibility, Affordability, Anonymity; Cooper, 1998), and this applies to much
content online. Search engines make almost any kind of pornographic con-
tent easily accessible, often free, and acquirable without the shame, em-
barrassment, or prosecution that was once often the case (Barak & Fisher,
2001; Barack & King, 2000; Cooper McLoughlin & Campbell, 2000; Cooper,
Putnam, Planchon, & Boies, 1999). Some types of pornography and online
sexual activity are clearly illegal (e.g., viewing sexually violent material, view-
ing indecent pictures of children, or seeking to groom children for sex over
Internet chat rooms (Egan, Hoskinson, & Shewan, 2011). Henry, Mandeville-
Norden, Hayes, and Egan (2010) conducted a study of 600 men convicted of
downloading indecent images of children and found that they fell into one
of three clusters: antisocial, emotionally unstable,orpsychometrically nor-
mal. The latter sometimes allude to being drawn to indecent material out of
curiosity when idly surfing the Internet. This suggests that although persons
with more deviant sexual preferences may find the medium of the Internet
to be an effective way to indulge in their interests, others may be sidetracked
into inappropriate or illicit content by more generically psychological factors
such as curiosity or compulsivity.
Compulsive sexuality can be seen as an uncontrollable addictive behav-
ior, causing a significant impact on an individuals’ life given the negative
consequences it evokes (Young, 2004). A person may ostensibly have his or
her sexual needs met but find the experience unsatisfying, leading him or her
to engage in further unrewarding or risky sexual activity (Gold & Heffner,
1998; Kingston & Firestone, 2008). Stack, Wasserman, and Kern (2004) found
that Internet pornography users were 3.7 times more likely to pay for sexual
intercourse than were persons with lower levels of pornography use. The
majority of men referred to clinicians for excessive use of sexual resources
on the Internet are married and heterosexual (Cooper et al., 2000). Such be-
havior is a commonly cited as a factor in decisions to separate and divorce
(Manning, 2006).
The five-factor model of personality comprises dimensions of neuroti-
cism, extraversion, openness to experience, agreeableness, and conscien-
tiousness (Costa & McCrae, 1992). The five-factor model is reliable, valid, and

Pornography Use, Personality, and Obsessionality 3
stable across cultures (Schmitt, Allik, McCrae, & Benet-Mart
´
ınez, 2007) and re-
lates to many aspects of antisocial behavior. Neuroticism, low agreeableness,
and low conscientiousness are the main predictors of antisocial behavior,
although openness to experience and extraversion sometimes differentiate
offenders further (Egan, 2011). With regard to sexual behavior, imprisoned
child molesters are higher in neuroticism and lower in extraversion and con-
scientiousness than are controls (Dennison, Stough, & Birgden, 2001); para-
philic men are likewise higher in neuroticism and lower in agreeableness and
conscientiousness (Fagan et al., 1991). Greater pornography use correlates
with higher anxiety, depression, impulsivity, and vulnerability to stress (neu-
roticism facets), lower scores on the extraversion facet of positive emotions,
lower scores on the conscientiousness facet of self-discipline, and higher
scores on the fantasy facet of openness to experience (Fagan et al., 1991).
Obsessionality is associated with a variety of behavioral problems in-
cluding sexual addictions (although terms such as addiction and compul-
sion to describe what some believe regard as craving is not without con-
troversy; Foddy, 2011). Irrespective of terminology semantics, Gold and
Heffner (1998) found some men more inclined to compulsive masturba-
tion and frequent use o f pornography. Egan, Kavanagh, and Blair (2005)
measured obsessive-compulsivity and personality in convicted sexual of-
fenders also assessed on the Sexual Offenders Assessment Package (used to
evaluate social functioning in sexual offenders). Three factors of the Sexual
Offenders Assessment Package (emotional distress, cognitions supporting
sex with children, and concern for others) were found. Emotional distress
correlated with higher neuroticism and lower extraversion, suggesting more
distress in the introverted and emotionally unstable individuals, while higher
obsessive-compulsivity was associated with greater numbers of child sexual
abuse-related cognitions. Persons with compulsive sexuality also sometimes
have comorbid behavioral and chemical cravings, compulsions, and addic-
tions (Kuzma & Black, 2008). Psychological-behavioral addictions (gambling,
technological, sexual) probably share a common genetic vulnerability with
more obviously chemical addictions (e.g., alcoholism or drug addiction;
Shaffer et al., 2004; Slutske et al., 2000).
Addictions are characterized by cue salience, mood modification,
tolerance, conflict, withdrawal symptoms, and relapse (Griffiths, 2000).
Caplan (2002) suggested excessive Internet use was similar to other
problematic behavioral dependencies and compulsions, and Sheldon
and Howitt (2007) argued compulsively accessing pornography on the
Internet is also an addiction. The medium of the Internet is inherently
reinforcing; endlessly responsive dynamic content might mean an apparent
addiction to pornography is as much a compulsive response to electronic
feedback (Griffiths, 2012; Putnam, 2000). Heavier Internet users are lower in
agreeableness, conscientiousness, and extraversion (Landers & Lounsbury,
2006), and often also high in neuroticism (Tsai et al., 2009). Excessive

4 V. Egan and R. Parmar
Internet use may thus share common factors with sexual compulsions and
preoccupations.
The present study examined constructs underlying greater use of In-
ternet pornography, considering personality, excessive use of the Internet,
greater sex preoccupation, and obsessionality as putative predictors. We
expected to replicate noted associations noted between personality, obses-
sionality and sexual and Internet compulsions, and sought to integrate these
elements into a single model, which has not been previously done. We also
aimed to examine how these constructs functioned as a simple measurement
model compared with a latent variable model in which all addiction-related
constructs indicated a single underlying construct.
METHOD
Design
The study used a descriptive, within-subjects correlational design using ques-
tionnaire methods to gather data. The independent variables measured were:
sexual preoccupation, excessive Internet use, personality, and obsessionality.
The dependent outcome variable was the amount of Internet pornography
used.
Participants
The sample comprised 226 male participants. All were recruited online
through the Internet via Facebook, psychological research websites, and
sports forums. The mean age of participants was 23.59 years (range = 18
to 62; SD = 8.70). The majority of participants were between the ages of
18–25 years, skewing data to younger men, although some participants were
substantially older, so age was root-transformed.
Materials
THE NEO-FIVE FACTOR INVENTORY-REVISED (NEO-FFI-R; MCCRAE &COSTA, 2004)
The NEO-FFI-R was used to assess personality (McCrae & Costa, 1996). The
scale comprises 60 items. This scale has good reliability and validity, and is
widely used.
T
HE MAUDSLEY OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE INVENTORY (MOCI; HODGSON &RACHMAN,
1977)
The MOCI assesses four dimensions of obsessive-compulsive behavior;
checking, cleaning, slowness, and doubting. The total score on the 30-item
scale provides a general index of the construct. The measure has a good
internal and test–retest reliability. We found reliabilities for slowness and
doubting below 0.6, so excluded them from the study.

Pornography Use, Personality, and Obsessionality 5
THE INTERNET ADDICTION TEST (IAT; YOUNG, 2004)
The IAT is a reliable and valid measure of addictive Internet use (Widyanto
& McMurran, 2004). It comprises 20 items measuring mild, moderate, and
severe level of Internet addiction on a 5-point Likert scale. The IAT’s scale
anchors range from 1 (“Rarely”), to 5 (“Always”). The option 0 (“Does not
apply”) is also provided.
T
HE SEXUAL ADDICTION SCREENING TEST-REVISED (SAST-R; CARNES,GREEN,
&C
ARNES, 2010)
The SAST-R was used to measure sexual preoccupation. The 45-item test
comprises eight subscales; Internet items (α = .57), men’s items (α = .47),
women’s items (α = .47), homosexuality (α = .46), preoccupation (α =
.57), loss of control (α = .66), relationship disturbance (α = .47), and affect
disturbance (α = .61). While the overall reliability for the SAST-R is 0.80,
individual subscale reliabilities are low, so in this study only the total SAST-R
score was used.
T
HE CYBER-PORNOGRAPHY USE INVENTORY (CPUI; GRUBBS,SESSOMS,WHEELER,
&V
OLK, 2010)
The CPUI measures Internet pornography use. It is a 40-item scale with
six subscales, including compulsivity, social use, isolation, interest, efforts,
and guilt. Most questions use Likert responses ranging from strongly agree to
strongly disagree or never to always. We tested the reliability of the subscales
of the CPUI for reliability, finding alphas of 0.73 for compulsivity, and 0.76
for social use. Isolated and guilt subscales were dropped due to low internal
reliability.
Procedure
An anonymous electronic questionnaire was presented online, no informa-
tion being acquired enabling the identification of individuals from their re-
sponses. The study website covered participation, consent, questionnaire
instructions, a written debrief, and contact information should there be any
concerns about the study or the behaviors examined. Data were automati-
cally written to file.
Ethical Issues
We obtained approval for the study from the Psychology Research Ethics
Committee. Participants gave informed consent before they began the on-
line questionnaire, and the purpose of the research, how the data would
be used, the length of the questionnaire, and anonymity were all explained.
Participants had the right to withdraw during assessment. Fuller debrief was
provided after the questionnaire was completed so that participants under-
stood the nature of the research.

6 V. Egan and R. Parmar
TABLE 1. Means, Standard Deviations, and Reliabilities of All Measures (N = 226)
Scale MSDCronbach’s α
NEO-Five-Factor Inventory-Revised
Neuroticism 21.69 9.16 0.87
Extraversion 29.12 7.39 0.84
Openness to experience 30.46 6.58 0.73
Agreeableness 28.22 7.34 0.80
Conscientiousness 28.89 7.01 0.81
Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory
Checking 2.40 4.07 0.68
Cleaning 3.10 2.20 0.62
Internet Addiction Test 30.85 14.49 0.91
Sexual Addiction Screening Test 3.36 3.20 0.80
Cyber Pornography Use Inventory
Compulsivity 29.53 10.45 0.73
Social 4.62 3.89 0.76
RESULTS
Table 1 presents means, standard deviations, and internal reliabilities for
all measures used in the study. The reliability of all measures used was
calculated using Cronbach’s alpha. Reliabilities were good overall, with the
lowest being 0.62 (MOCI cleaning) and the highest 0.91 (IAT).
Correlations
Correlations examined the relations among personality, obsessionality, and
the behavioral compulsion measures (Table 2). To reduce spurious associa-
tions, we focused on associations of p < .01 or below. Significant positive
correlations were found between neuroticism and MOCI checking, MOCI
cleaning, IAT, CPUI compulsivity, and the SAST. We found significant nega-
tive correlations between extraversion and MOCI checking, I AT, and SAST.
Openness to experience was not associated with any measure. Significant
negative correlations were found between agreeableness and conscientious-
ness, and IAT, and the SAST. Last, age was significantly and negatively
correlated with the IAT, and CPUI compulsivity.
Correlations also examined the relation between obsessionality and ad-
diction measures (Table 3). Significant positive associations were found be-
tween MOCI checking and MOCI cleaning, and the SAST, MOCI cleaning
and IAT, between IAT and CPUI compulsivity, and the IAT and the SAST.
A significant positive correlation was also found between CPUI compulsiv-
ity and total SAST. These patterns of association show individuals higher in
obsessionality are also more likely to view Internet pornography.

Pornography Use, Personality, and Obsessionality 7
TABLE 2. Correlations Between Personality, Obsessionality, and Addiction Measures
(N = 226)
Maudsley
Obsessive-
Compulsive
Inventory Internet Cyber Pornography Sexual
Addiction Use Inventory: Addiction
Checking Cleaning Test Compulsivity Screening Test
Neuroticism .44
∗∗∗
.20
∗∗
.32
∗∗∗
.23
∗∗∗
.39
∗∗∗
Extraversion –.18
∗∗
.06 –.19
∗∗
–.06 –.19
∗∗
Openness to experience –.06 –.10 .02 .08 .09
Agreeableness –.07 –.03 –.19
∗∗
–.16
∗
–.27
∗∗∗
Conscientiousness .07 .01 –.32
∗∗∗
–.16
∗
–.18
∗∗
Age –.06 –.17
∗
–.24
∗∗∗
–.22
∗∗
–.05
∗
p < .05.
∗∗
p < .01.
∗∗∗
p < .001.
Age is root-transformed.
Path Analyses
Given the considerable correlation in the data set, a multivariate approach
aimed to clarify the observed relations more elegantly. Two structural equa-
tion models were calculated using AMOS (Figures 1 and 2). Neither model
used extraversion or openness to experience as predictors, as neither of
these personality dimensions showed any substansive contribution to the
obsessionality or addiction outcomes in the earlier analysis. We used MOCI
checking as a predictor as it was more reliable than MOCI cleaning. We
fixed covariance pathways between agreeableness and neuroticism, as well
as agreeableness and conscientiousness, to accommodate correlations be-
tween these ostensibly independent personality dimensions (Egan, Austin,
& Deary, 2000).
The first structural equation model was a path analysis exploring the
relations among personality, obsessional checking and age, and the three
behavioral compulsions examined as observed (manifest) variables. We theo-
rized scores on the CPUI were a product of sexual and Internet compulsions,
with these being products of more general compulsivity and personality;
TABLE 3. Correlations Between Obsessionality and Behavioral Compulsions
12345
1. Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory:
Checking
— .46
∗∗∗
.33
∗∗∗
.16
∗
.33
∗∗∗
2. Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory:
Cleaning
— .21
∗∗
.08 .08
3. Internet Addiction Test — .37
∗∗∗
.27
∗∗∗
4. Cyber Pornography Use Inventory:
Compulsivity
— .42
∗∗∗
5. Sexual Addiction Screening Test —
∗
p < .05.
∗∗
p < .01.
∗∗∗
p < .001.

8 V. Egan and R. Parmar
Internet
Pornography
Addiction
Sex
Addiction
Internet
Addiction
N
A
MOCI
checking
C
Age
e1
e2
e3
e4
e5
e6
e7
e8
.26
-.20
.20
.34
-.33
-.19
.35
.25
.44
.18
-.25
-.15
-.17
FIGURE 1. Path analysis (calculated using AMOS) between measured variables in the present
study. All boxed constructs are measured variables in the study (age square root-transformed
to reduce variance). Straight lines are significant pathways with standardized regression co-
efficients, curved lines are covariances. Personality (in particular, neuroticism, agreeableness,
and conscientiousness), Maudsley Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory: Checking and age predict
scores on self reported sex addiction and Internet addiction scales, and these independently
predict the amount of Internet pornography a person views. This model fits very well (χ
2
=
1.1, ns,GFI= 0.982, AGFI = 0.957, CFI = 0.994).
we expected neuroticism and agreeableness to predict sex addiction, as
would MOCI checking, whereas conscientiousness, age, and MOCI checking
would feed into Internet addiction in parallel, these, in turn, independently
predicting Internet pornography use. The model fitted very well, χ
2
(15),
χ
2
= 1.1, ns,GFI= 0.982, adjusted GFI = 0.957, CFI = 0.994. An alternative
structural equation model is shown in Figure 2, in which a latent variable
of addiction or compulsivity conceptualizes the relations discussed. Again,
all pathways are significant. The model produced was not significant (χ
2
=
1.7, p = .06), and again the data fitted the model well (GFI = 0.977, AGFI
= 0.936, CFI = 0.965), showing significant pathways to overall compulsiv-
ity/addiction from neuroticism and MOCI checking, and separate significant
pathways from agreeableness, conscientiousness, and age to the latent “Ad-
diction construct”. Age had a pathway to addiction suggesting the younger
the age, the more likely it was for general compulsivity to occur. Direct path-
ways between neuroticism and conscientiousness and MOCI checking were

Pornography Use, Personality, and Obsessionality 9
Addiction
Internet
Addiction
e7
.54
Internet
Porn
Addiction
e8
.34
Sex
Addiction
e9
.48
A
N
C
age
MOCI
checking
e1
e2
e3
e4
e5
.48
-.24
-.41
-.21
.17
e6
.50
-.22
.18
-.20
.31
.23
.32
FIGURE 2. Personality, obsessionality, and age fitted to a general addiction latent variable
using a structural equation model. The circles are error variances for the measured variables
represented in boxes (age square-root transformed to reduce variance). The covariance be-
tween the personality dimensions is represented by the double-headed curved arrow between
the variables. Straight lines are significant pathways, and standardized regression coefficients
exist alongside the various pathways, where negative means a lower level of that factor in-
creases the relating variable. The model fits very well (χ
2
= 1.7, P = 0.06; GFI = 0.977,
AGFI = 0.936, CFI = 0.965).
also found, showing direct and indirect influences on latent psychological
addiction. The latent compulsivity/addiction variable comprised measures of
Internet and sexual preoccupation, and Internet pornography use. Fitness
indices between the two models were essentially the same.
DISCUSSION
This study examined how Internet pornography use related to personal-
ity, compulsive behavior, Internet usage, and sex addiction. Clear pathways
were found between neuroticism, MOCI checking and an overall compul-
sivity/addiction construct comprising excessive Internet use, sexual preoccu-
pation, and greater Internet pornography consumption. Higher neuroticism
was significantly related to Internet pornography consumption, but was also
associated with the other behavioral outcomes and compulsivity measures.
This reaffirms the clinical axiom that neurotic individuals are often also ob-
sessional and compulsive. We did not find either extraversion or openness
to experience strongly predicted to outcome measures once the influence of

10 V. Egan and R. Parmar
neuroticism, agreeableness, and conscientiousness were entered into analy-
ses. Given the clear, consistent relations within the measures, we tested two
models to integrate all information: (a) a measurement model where con-
structs were used as indirect indices; and (b) a model that created a latent
addiction construct out of Internet, sexual, and Internet pornography com-
pulsivity/addiction. Personality and obsessionality drove both models, and
statistically, the two models were essentially the same. In theory, the model
with a latent variable for compulsivity/addiction was more coherent and con-
sistent, suggesting greater computer, sexual and Internet pornography use
is attributable to a single potentially problematic construct emerging from
underlying disposition and psychopathology. This view vindicates the view
that the most important criteria for assessing sexual addiction is obsession
(Leedes, 2001).
The notion of generalized vulnerability to addiction is now common,
and well evidenced (Walker, Clark, & Folk, 2010). We add to the litera-
ture on this topic, which previously favored the importance of impulsiv-
ity and sensation-seeking (Ersche, Turton, Pradhana,. Bullmore, & Robbins,
2010), by showing readily measurable general traits of personality and psy-
chopathology also predict such vulnerability. Our results reiterate the con-
tinuity of normal and pathological behavior. The significance of low agree-
ableness, low conscientiousness, and high neuroticism as antecedents to
problematic behavior is shown in both simple correlations between mea-
sures, as well as the path analyses.
Compulsivity (in the form of MOCI checking) was a strong independent
influence on general addiction, with indirect effects of neuroticism and con-
scientiousness also working through compulsivity. That higher neuroticism
and lower conscientiousness predicts MOCI checking parallels the associ-
ation and direction of these traits for compulsive hoarding (LaSalle-Ricci
et al., 2006). Men seeking treatment for hypersexual behavior (one of many
proxy terms for sexual compulsivity, obsessionality, or addiction) are emo-
tionally unstable, vulnerable to stress (both themselves proxies for general
neuroticism) and alexithymic (Reid, Carpenter, Spackman, & Willes, 2008).
The present study sampled men from the community, and we are unaware
if they had formally recognized clinical problems. Nevertheless, our findings
are compatible with those found in the more explicitly pathological literature.
Our results lend themselves to the practical and clinical consideration
of treatment and therapy for sexually compulsive persons, or those ex-
cessively preoccupied with Internet pornography. Overall, persons treated
with cognitive-behavioral treatments for obsessive-compulsive disorder have
fewer symptoms post intervention than persons given more pharmacologi-
cal management (Gava et al., 2007). Although sexual and marital therapists
are sometimes concerned that they do not have sufficient specific training
regarding problematic pornography use (Ayres & Haddock, 2009), basic

Pornography Use, Personality, and Obsessionality 11
clinical interventions (e.g., twice-weekly exposure and ritual prevention) ap-
pear helpful in reducing compulsive sexual symptoms (Williams, Crozier,
& Powers, 2011). Southern (2008) likewise recommends generic treatment
approaches such as relapse prevention, arousal reconditioning, coping skills
training, and dissociative states therapy, which any clinical practitioner or
therapist should be able to potentially implement. Conjoint work focusing
on intimacy enhancement and the rebuilding of trust and attachment is also
often helpful, and can improve a sense of relationship trust, and confidence
in the future, mutually softening the entrenched feelings that can otherwise
lead to defensiveness, corrosive reproaching, and the resultant psychological
reactance that can trouble a couple undergoing therapy (Zitzman & Butler,
2005).
One difficulty for somebody seeking to contain compulsive sexual pre-
occupation through cognitive-behavioral methods is that of being aware of
the taboo stimulus through failed suppression. This awareness may lead the
person to return to the thoughts themselves, and find them hard to discard,
particularly if the person is more self-critical or overvalues such transient
thoughts (Magee & Teachman, 2007). The development of acceptance and
commitment therapy, in which one accepts the intrusion of thoughts, and
encourages awareness of them without action functions to help an individual
eschew being drawn by a transient idea, and is an interesting development
in the treatment of psychological difficulties (Ruiz, 2010). Acceptance and
commitment therapies share elements with other effective cognitive thera-
pies (e.g., dialectical behavioral, mindfulness therapies). Twohig and Crosby
(2010) treated a small series of men seeking treatment for excessive view-
ing of pornography using an acceptance and commitment therapy model.
Participants reduced such viewing at short and longer (3-month) follow-up,
and also showed reduced levels of symptoms associated with obsessive-
compulsive disorder. Though this was an uncontrolled trial that needs tighter
replication, the results suggest straightforward clinical interventions can po-
tentially treat problems associated with obsessionality and excessive Internet
pornography viewing.
The present study inevitably had limitations; our study was self-report,
and the sample self-selected. Though we sought a broad age range for
participants, there was a skew to participants being aged between 18 and
26 years; thus, one could argue, some of the responses may have reflected
immaturity. Nor did we gather information on other addictive behaviors (e.g.,
gambling, substance abuse), or antisocial behavior. This was intentional; we
did not want to overburden participants, were already gathering a lot of
psychometric data, and had aimed to focus on everyday behavior with a
pathological dimension. The strongest age effect was the association with
latent compulsivity/addiction, as one might expect greater compulsive use
of .both Internet pornography and the Internet itself in this group. We found
no effects of more (or less) education in exploratory preliminary regression

12 V. Egan and R. Parmar
analyses. Only a small number (n = 12) of participants declared themselves
homosexual or bisexual, so there was insufficient data to explore the influ-
ence of sexual orientation on the observed associations. Our results would
benefit from being replicated in an offender sample, to see if criterion groups
show replicable, or stronger effects.
Nevertheless, this study shows a clear association between personal-
ity and obsessionality in relation to excessive use of the Internet, sexual
preoccupation, and Internet pornography consumption. The results of the
present study provide strong evidence for generic psychopathological un-
derpinnings such as neuroticism and obsessionality being seen in persons
reporting higher levels of Internet pornography use, which in turn appears
part of a broader spectrum of addictive behavior, upon which age and lower
agreeableness and lower conscientiousness also have an influence. As with
many pleasures that are problematic if overindulged, personality and under-
lying disposition differentiates persons who are subject to such difficulties.
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